Dry weather in Russia's southern regions to affect grain harvest more than May frosts - agriculture minister

MOSCOW. June 21 (Interfax) - Dry weather in Russia's southern regions will likely have a greater effect on the grain harvest this year than the May frosts, Agriculture Minister Oksana Luth said.

"It was not the frosts that have significantly affected the grain crops, but the dry weather that has occurred in the southern regions," Luth said on Friday during the farmers' forum called Small Agribusiness Development: Issues, Solutions, and Growth Points at the All-Russia Field Day in the Stavropol Territory.

"Yes, it has started raining now. Nevertheless, what we currently see is what we have seen for the first harvest. We had a first threshing yield of minus 40% in the Rostov Region. This means that even colleagues from the Rostov Region have said that they would have minus 30% compared to last year's harvest. The regions are the driest, minus 40%," Luth said.

Luth said that the ministry expects a decent harvest this year despite this, though "it will be lower than last year of course."

As reported, the Agriculture Ministry has retained the previous forecast for the grain harvest at 132 million tonnes this year, including 85 to 86 million tonnes of wheat.

Russia harvested 144.9 million tonnes of grain in 2023, including 92.8 million tonnes of wheat.